Railway bumping-post.



No. 704,275. Patented July 8, |902.

P. SCANLIN. v RAILWAY BUMPING POST.

(Application led Mar. 15, 1902.)

2 beets-sheet l.

(No Model.)

No. 704,275.' v Patented July 8, |902.

P. SCANLIN.

RAILWAY BUMPING POST.

(Application filed Mar. 15, 1902.3

{No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

z @5M/M2.' @ha/JM 9M? ffm UNTTnn STATES PATENT OFFICE.

PATRICK SCANLIN, OF BOONE, IOWA.

RAlLWAY BUMPlNG-POST.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 704,275, dated. July 8, 1902.

Application led March 15, 1902. Serial No. 98,342. (No model.)

To @ZZ whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, PATRICK ScANLiN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Boone, in the county of Boone and State of Iowa, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Railway Bumping- Posts, of which the following is a specification.

The object of my invention is to provide a railway bumping-post of simple, durable, and inexpensive construction which may be applied to a railway-track at the end of a track or at any intermediate point and that may be constructed without bending the track-rails, so that the bumping-post may be applied to a track quickly and without removing the track-rails and may be removed from the track and leave the track in the same condition that it was before the bumping-post was applied.

A further object is to provide a bumpingpost that when placed at the end of a track will occupy a minimum of track-space-that is to say, it will permit the cars to stand on the track quite close to the end of the track.

A further object is to provide a bumpingpost in which the impact of swiftly-moving cars against the bumping-post will not tend to pull the track-rails in a direction longitudinally of the track, thus avoiding the possibility of sliding the track-rails lengthwise and breaking the connection between the track-rails; and my object is, further, to provide a bumping-post of this class designed to resist thrust such as would be occasioned by a car upon the track and to provide an anchor for the bumping-post arranged to perform the double function of preventing the bumping-post from bending out of its vertical position and to also prevent it from moving longitudinally of the track, thus avoiding all possibility of tearing the track-rails apart at their connections.

My invention consists in certain details in the construction, arrangement, and combination of the various parts of the device whereby the objects contemplated are attained, as hereinafter more fully set forth, pointed out in my claims, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which* Figure 1 shows a side elevation of the complete bumping-post applied to a section of tracks. Fig. 2

shows a top or plan view of same. Fig. 3 shows a rear elevation of same, and Fig. 4L shows avertical sectional view on the line a 4 of Fig. 1 looking toward the bumping-post.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, I have used the reference-numeral 10 to indicate the track-rails, and 11 the railway-ties to which the track-rails are attached at the point where it is desired to connect the bumping-post. I reinforce the ties by means of the stringers 12, extending longitudinally of the track and notched to receive the ties.

The post proper is composed of four railpieces. Two of them have vertically-arranged portions 13, arranged side by side. At the bottom of the vertically-arranged portions the rails incline downwardly, Jforwardly, and outwardly to points adjacent to the track-rails. These portions of the rails are indicated by the numeral 14. At the ends of these portions of the rails the rails incline horizontally and in a direction parallel with the track-rail at 15, and the forward ends of the rails incline straight downwardly at 16 and engage the forward face of one of the ties 11. The parts 15 of these rails are spaced apart by means of the metal brace 17, which overlaps the parts 15 and which is secured to one of the ties and stringers by means of the bolts 18, and the parts 15 are connected with the track-rails by means of bolts 19, and filler-blocks 2O are intei-posed between the parts 15 and the trackrail.

To counteract any tendency that the rail portions just described might have of moving upwardly or in a direction longitudinally of the track, I have provided an anchor 2l, which may be made of wood, and this anchor is connected with the -downward-inclined portions 16 by means of rods 22, connected with the anchor and bifurcated at their upper ends and bolted to the parts 16 by the bolts 23.

As before stated, the bumping-post is composed of four rail portions. The remaining two rail portions are vertically arranged at their upper ends at 24 between the verticallyarranged portions 13, and filler-blocks 25 and 26 are provided between these rail portions, and bolts 27 pass horizontally through these rail portions and through the filler-blocks, thus firmly binding them together. The rail portions forming the lower ends of the parts IOO 2l incline downwardly, rearwardly, and outwardly at 28, and their lower ends at 29 in cline rearwardly and parallel with each other.

The numeral 30 indicates a metal plate on top of one of the railway-ties immediatelyin the rear of the upper ends of the rail portions and connected with said ties by means of the bolts 3l and with the track-rails by means of the bolts 32, and the rail portions 29 rest on top of this plate.

The numeral 33 indicates a metal strap overlapping the parts 29 and connected with the plate 30 and the tie by means of the bolts 34. The forward edge of the strap 33 rests against the downward-inclined portions 2S to thereby prevent rearward movement of these parts.

Attached to the front of the upright portions of the bumping-post rails is a plate 35, and a yielding bumper 36 is connected with said plate and with the iiller-bloclr 25 by means of the bolts 37. On the rear of the upright portions of the post-rails is an angleplate 38, through which the bolts pass, and these bolts serve to hold the angle-plate in position. This angularplate projects beyond the sides of the upright portions of the postrails, and two rods 39 pass through the ends of the angle-plate and extend downwardly, forwardly, and outwardly and are attached at their lower ends to the outer faces of the track-rails by means of the bolts 19.

In practical use the major portion of the impact upon a bumping-post is in a direction longitudinal of the track, and in my post this impact will be counter-acted by the forwardly-projecting post-rails, which have their ends inclined downwardly to overlap a tie and which also have their forward ends attached to an anchor deeply embedded in the earth beneath the track-rails. There is also a downward thrust upon the upper ends of the bumping-post, and this thrust is counteracted, first, by the rearwardly-projecting postrails, and, further, by means of the anchor,

which is directly attached to the forward ends of the forwardly-projecting post-rails. The said forwardly-projecting post-rails will act somewhat on the lever principle, and any downward pressure upon the upper ends will serve to force the forward ends upwardly. Hence the anchor will counteract this tendency.

It is in some instances of great importance to provide a post that will occupya minimum of track-space,and in posts of this class, where there can be no rearwardlyproj ecting braces, it is extremely diflicult to prevent the post from bending rearwardly when struck by rapidly-moving cars, and it is also difficult to prevent the entire post from moving in a rear# ward direction and carrying the track-rails with it, thus tearing them apart at their connection with the adjacent rails. I provide for both of these contingencies by means, iirst, of the metal plate 30 and the strap 33, engaging the rearwardly-inclined post-rails, and,

secondly, by connecting the forward ends of the forwardly-projecting rails with an anchor deeply embedded in the earth.

Obviously this bumping-post is simple, durable, and inexpensive in Aconstruction and may be removed or applied to any part of the track without removing the track-rails.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States therefor, is-

l. In a device of the class described, a base including track-rails, two rails having their forward ends on the base and their body por tions extending rearwardly and upwardly, two rails having their upper ends connected with the rear ends of the aforesaid rails and their body portion extended downwardly and resting on the base and an anchor connected with the forward ends of the iirst-mentioned rails.

2. In a device of the class described, a base including track-rails and ties and stringers connect-in g the ties, two rails having their forward ends fixed to the track-rails and ties and projected downwardly and in engagenient with one of the sides of one of the ties and having their body portions extended rear-Y wardly and upwardly, two rails having their upper ends connected with the rear ends of the aforesaid rails and the body portions extending downwardly and having their lower ends resting on the base and an anchor beneath the forward ends of the first-mentioned rails and rods attached to the downwardlyinclined portions of said rails and also to said anchor.

3. In a device of the class described, a base including track-rails, two rails having their forward ends on the base and their body portions extending rearwardly and upwardly, two rails having their upper ends connected with the rear ends of the aforesaid rails and their body portions extended downwardly and resting on the base and an anchor connected with the forward ends of the first-mentioned rails, a plate engaging the rear faces of the upper ends of said rails and rods attached to said plate and projected forwardly and downwardly and attached to the track-rails.

4. An improved railway bumping-post,com prising in combination, a number of railwayties, stringers connecting said ties, straight track-rails mounted on said ties, two rails having their forward ends inclined vertically and in engagement with the front face of one of said ties and the body portions inclined iirst horizontally and parallel with the trackrails and secured thereto, then rearwardly, upwardly, and inwardly toward the center of the track and finally straight upwardly, two rails with their forward ends arranged vertically with their upper ends and between the rear ends of the first-mentioned rails and their body portions projected downwardly and rearwardly and their rear ends projected horizontally and resting upon one of the ties, means for connecting the upper ends of both IOO IIO

pairs 'of rails, a plate resting on top of the ties on which the rearwardly-inclined rails rest, and connected with the track-rails, a metal strap on said plate and overlapping the ends of said rails, a bar connected with one of the ties and with its ends engaging hori- Zontal portions of the forward rails to space them apart, an anchor beneath the forward end of the forward rails and rods fixed to the said rails and to the said anchor, for the purposes stated.

5. Animprovedrailwaybumping-post,com prising in combination, a number of railwayties, stringers connecting said ties, straight track-rails mounted on said ties,two rails having their forward ends inclined vertically and in engagement with the front face of one of said ties and the body portions inclined iirst horizontally and parallel with the track-rails and secured thereto, then rearwardly, upwardly, and inwardly toward the center of the track and finally straight upwardly, two rails with their forward ends arranged vertically with their upper ends and between the rear ends of the first-mentioned rails and their body portions projected downwardly and rearwardly and their rear ends projecting horizontally and resting upon one of the ties, means for connecting the upper ends of both pairs of rails, a plate resting on top of the ties on which the rearwardly-inclined rails rest, and connected with the track-rail, a metal strap on said plate and overlapping the ends of said rails, a bar connected with one of the ties and with its ends engaging the horizontal portions of the forward rails to space them apart, an anchor beneath the forward end of the forward rails, and rods fixed to the said rails and to the said anchor, and a plate fixed at the rear face of the upper ends of said rails and rods fixed to said plate and extended forwardly and downwardly and attached to the trackrails, for the purposes stated.

Des Moines, Iowa, February 7, 1902.

PATRICK SCANLIN. Witnesses:

' REUBEN G. ORwIe, J. RALPH ORwIe. 

